


Thomas' petit train de plaisir

by AlanPalgut



Category: The Railway Series - W. Awdry, Thomas the Tank Engine - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-07
Updated: 2020-01-07
Packaged: 2021-02-27 09:00:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 629
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22154416
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlanPalgut/pseuds/AlanPalgut
Summary: I've been listening to Gioacchino Rossini's Péchés de vieillesse a lot, and I wondered what would happen if Thomas were the victim of Un petit train de plaisir.





	Thomas' petit train de plaisir

THOMAS the Tank Engine has worked on the Island of Sodor for years. He absolutely loves puffing around with his coaches Annie and Clarabel. Sometimes his cheek will get the better of him, often leading to various accidents, as perhaps when he crashed into a pile of snow and got stuck. His driver often recounts this tale from circa 1964.  
Thomas was at Knapford, his main line "connection," to take passengers to Toryreck, where he was to meet Bertie the Bus. Whether Bertie arrived first or Thomas dis did not matter, as the two often conversed about their race. Thomas had hoped to meet Henry there, but he became quite impatient and so did his passengers.  
"Oh, dear," thought Thomas. "Were I to race Bertie again, he would certainly win now!"  
Just then, Thomas heard a whistle. Henry, who felt rather stressed, puffed in. "I got held up at Vicarstown," he said. "Bad conditions are on the track, and I hope you take great care, Thomas."  
"Like I'm pulling the 'Flying Kipper' anytime soon," scoffed Thomas, but he knew in his mind that Henry was right.  
Henry snorted, quite offended, without another word. Thomas blew his whistle (Cloche d'appel) as Henry's passengers got into Annie and Clarabel (Montée en Wagon). As soon as the Conductor blew his whistle, Thomas departed (En avant la Machine).  
As Thomas passed various fields and villages, he blew his whistle (Sifflet satanique) so that people could see and hear him. Soon he saw the station, where his Driver applied the brakes (Douce mélodie du frein) before he came to a halt (Arrivée à la gare).  
Bertie was not at the station yet. "I guess I beat him this time," he thought. Then he heard a loud honk as Bertie rolled in. The two exchanged passengers (Les lions parisiens offrant la main aux biches pour descendre du Wagon), and Thomas departed again, this time to Ffarquhar (Suite du voyage). Little did he know that trouble was soon to come.  
Just past the viaduct at Elsbridge there is a sharp curve. The gradient is not very strong, but Thomas always exercised great care here, as the sign said "MAXIMUM SPEED: 20 MPH." The area had been poorly ballasted, and rain had caused some ballast to come loose.  
Thomas was going 15 mph around the curve, but he couldn't stop, and he very easily derailed (Terrible déraillement du convoi). Thomas' Driver and Fireman had jumped clear, but the whole train was derailed, resulting in one injury (Premier blessé), then several more (Second blessé). Thomas, who had rolled into a nearby bush, was disappointed to know that the derailment had killed not one person (Premier mort en Paradis), but two (Second mort en enfer).  
The Driver called Sir Topham Hatt. "Oh, dear!" he cried. "I do hope Thomas is okay. I'll be over there right away."  
Thomas' boiler was scratched, but he was more upset than hurt. Sir Topham Hatt saw the deceased taken away (Chant funèbre), then whispered a solemn prayer (Amen) before he spoke to Thomas.  
"I'm very sorry, sir," said Thomas as several tears rained down his face.  
"Oh, it wasn't your fault, Thomas," said Sir Topham Hatt. "This place has never had good ballast. We really must improve this curve. Percy will help with it while you're at the Works."  
"At least they didn't catch me," whispered Thomas to himself (On ne m'y attrapera pas – G.R.).  
Edward took Thomas to the Works as they both thought about how sad a few Sudrians would be (Douleur aiguë des héritiers). "You can be a little cheeky, Thomas," said Edward, "but things like these happen a lot."  
Thomas said nothing. He knew that Edward's words were true (Tout ceci est plus que naïf, mais c'est vrai).


End file.
